


Catch Me If You Can

by GoldenLava



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Androids, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Crimes & Criminals, F/M, Gun Violence, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-15
Updated: 2018-11-22
Packaged: 2019-08-24 05:37:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16633958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenLava/pseuds/GoldenLava
Summary: One person can change everything... or in your case, one android could. Your original plans are thrown on their head and now you've found your way into a war that you wanted no part in. Of course, you never had much loyalty to Cyberlife in the first place. May as well cause some chaos while you're at it - it's what you do best.





	1. Chapter 1

The police cars that had swarmed the streets had packed up and left after finding that the desperate call for assistance had merely been a prank. At least they had gotten another report so nobody had bothered attempting to find whoever had tricked them. Good. You didn’t really want to spend another day explaining to the officers that your phone was in for repairs and thus it couldn’t possibly have been you.

The disposable cell splashed loudly as it fell through the grate and tumbled into the sewer below. Nobody would ever think to bother searching down there but even if they did, your fingerprints would be long gone from the buttons.

And you had just earned yourself a large amount of money without even having to do anything strenuous. Perfect.

You shivered and pulled your coat up around your ears. The steady rainfall that was plaguing Detroit lately was steadily becoming your worst nightmare for getting around. It turned preferring to walk to ‘lessen your carbon footprint’ into torture. Not that you actually gave a shit about reducing anything but people would question it if you were using public transport at 8 pm.

Best to just leave that.

When you saw the cop cars waiting on your route back, you did end up faltering slightly. It was the most unnoticeable trip but you cursed yourself for it nevertheless. If you had continued walking until you were ordered to cross over, they would think you were distracted and brush off the trip. It just meant getting your face seen in the area but it was better to do it and avoid suspicion.

Plus the fact that you were walking up to an Eden Club made you curious as to what exactly was going on inside. Not enough that you would stick your nose into it but you were tempted and it was boring to keep your eyes on the ground. Cold and miserable worked.

You walked until the point where somebody stepped in front of you. He was a young police officer that you hadn’t really seen before despite your encounters with Detroit’s finest. “I’m sorry ma’am but this is a crime scene. You’re not allowed to walk here.”

“Oh, right,” you said with a small laugh. You pushed the wet hair out of your face and shook your head. “I’m sorry, I can be a bit of a ditz at times. I didn’t even notice the lights. Just been one of those days, you know?”

He nodded and you could see that your drenched look was garnering some sympathy. “Of course,” he said. “There’s a crossing a few meters back.”

You nodded and glanced over as a black car pulled up to the scene. “My greatest apologies for disturbing the crime scene,” you said. Smiling at him, you turned around to leave. He didn’t think there was anything wrong at all and you were happy with that.

And then somebody called you by name.

It was confusing enough that you actually turned around – something that you wouldn’t have done in a normal scenario – to see how they had managed to get that. You were sure you didn’t personally know any cops.

It was an android and that immediately made you purse your lips in distaste. The police variants always seemed to become suspicious of you the moment they saw you. It was very irritating because you couldn’t talk your way out of it. Androids didn’t take flattery and you couldn’t play with their empathy at all. They would just continue bothering you no matter how you tried to squirm your way free from the interrogation.

“Yes?” you asked, charming smile going on show only for the human cops that were still watching you.

The android tilted its head to the side curiously, reminding you faintly of a dog. “Accourding to my scan, you are an engineer at Cyberlife. If you regularly frequent this club, perhaps you can answer some questions about the behavior of the androids located within it.”

You raised an eyebrow and cocked one hip to the side. “Frequent an android strip joint? I was just walking past. Don’t you think that I see enough of the things at work without willingly looking for more? I wish I could help but I can’t.”

“I apologise for my assumption,” it said. “I was basing it off how uncomfortable you appeared to be with regards to the police presence.”

“Think anybody would be,” you said. You started crossing the street. “Sorry but I can’t really help. I’ve never set foot in that place in my life and I never plan to.” You gave a small salute and then turned and continued walking, rolling your eyes at the idiocy that came with the police being able to immediately know who you were thanks to the androids.

Now there was absolutely no way you could lie about why you were which meant… you sighed and walked around the corner from the crime scene before pushing open the door to a nearby bar. The patrons all tensed at the noise but relaxed upon recognising who it was.

“I need another cover,” you said to the bartender, sitting down on one of the stools and shrugging off your jacket. “Something dramatic and depressing that would drive me to be heading from downtown here for a drink. Name it.”

She pondered it for a few seconds while she skidded a drink to another patron and then leaned on the counter in front of you. “So there was this guy,” she said. “Jack or some shit like that, I don’t remember. Two of you met up here and you wanted to take it a little further. Ass lives downtown so you went for a date at some fancy restaurant but he ditched your ass and never showed up. You came here to drown out your sorrows.”

“Sounds like a plan,” you said. “What’s the price for you going along with it?”

“One-fifty,” she responded simply. “Extra price because we have feds sniffing about tonight and if they do ask, they’re going to take more convincing.”

You nodded and grabbed the water that she put in front of you. “Deal,” you agreed. “I want to find out who caused the scene down there so I can kick their ass for it. They’ve completely screwed up my plans for tonight and now I have to sit here for a few hours.”

“From what I heard before we were chased out, some guy had a heart attack because he was trying too much at once,” cackled one of the men from a booth. “Betting it was that fat cunt who has more money than he needs.”

“For his sake he had better be dead or I am going to tear him to shreds for this,” you muttered. “I was meant to go to bed early tonight because of work tomorrow. Have to go in as early as possible to get enough out before everybody else comes in. Thankfully those stupid machines don’t know how to count and keep glossing over the missing stock.”

“Speakin’ of, I’m going to need some more blue blood before next week Tues,” one of the woman piped up. “I’m running low on stock. Willing to pay extra for it.”

You flashed her a smile that was far too cheeky. “Aren’t you lucky that I’m going into work on a Sunday to get more? I think that doubles the price.”

“Double will cover both the timeframe and the days,” she said.

Waving a dismissive hand, you glanced towards one of the doors. “I’m going to start charging more for basic favours. These distractions are putting me on the radar and they have an android working as a detective now. It’s not worth the risk.”

It was a surprise that nobody in the bar volunteered more information about Cyberlife’s new ‘move’ against crime. They genuinely knew as little about this android as you did which made you very uncomfortable. As an engineer for biocomponents, you weren’t told much about what the bosses were doing which sometimes posed an issue.

Preparing for a long wait to prove that you were really there for emotion issues, you trudged over to one of the booths and settled down there. It was dark enough in this bar that you doubted anybody would have spotted your face through the few windows even if they were looking for you.

The first time your phone buzzed against your leg, you ignored it and continued watching the other people in the bar as they argued. The second time you figured that it was something important but still ignored it to go along with your cover story. The third time you pulled out your phone and answered.

“Baby I’m busy,” you said, being sure to slur your words just enough that it sounded like you had had a few drinks. “Call me later.”

“No can do,” the overly-chipper voice answered. “They’re wanting you down here now so you better grab a cab and head down here immediately. One of the trucks has just gone missing filled with biocomponents and they’re thinking it’s one of us.”

You bolted upright and started pulling on your jacket. “Please tell me that you’re joking.”

“Nope,” he whispered. Matt was one of the very few co-workers that you were okay with and he was one of the five people that had your phone number so you knew he wouldn’t be messing around with you. “They told me to call you because they want to see if you can track down the truck. Don’t worry, they know it isn’t one of the engineers.”

Damn right, it wasn’t. You knew for a fact that you were the only person in the department that would dare…. “I’ll be right there,” you said, hanging up the phone. An entire truck. What kind of moron would even dare try to pull off a heist like that?

How would they even manage it?

You were simultaneously impressed and irritated that they had managed to pull it off. The latter was probably because you knew that you would never be able to even try something similar.

“Cyberlife just got robbed,” you said to the bartender. “By somebody else. I’m going to head down there and see if I can find out which asshole did it. Doubt I’ll get much done but who knows. Tell me if you catch any rumours about somebody else in the area selling biocomponents, will you?”

“Always,” she promised as she tossed a towel over her shoulder. “What did they take? I’ll put out some feelers and see if I can find them.”

You shrugged. “Whatever it was, I’ll let you know tomorrow.”

When you arrived at the docks, the rain had chosen to dissipate in an attempt to better your mood. It didn’t work. You stalked over to the security building with a glare on your face that could burn a hole through metal. The guards didn’t bother asking for your identity card even if they should have. They got the feeling that you weren’t playing around.

Matt noticed you first and trotted over from where he was talking to a police officer to tell you about what happened. “I got the call from the boss earlier. They definitely think that it’s one of us but you should be in the clear. You’re the only engineer they asked for.”

“Reassuring,” you said flatly. You glanced over the crowds and took note of the android officers that were working. It was probably for the best to avoid those. “Mind telling me how anybody managed to steal one of these trucks.”

“They stole the key from the guard office,” he explained. “Stuck a screwdriver into the electronics and short-circuited it. It’s a miracle that they didn’t get electrocuted or worse but somehow, they managed it. Apparently, the dogs didn’t bark at all.”

“Oh I’m sure they were completely silent the entire time,” you scoffed. You knew how oblivious the guards could be without more affirmation about it. “They’re not trained guard dogs after all. Just regular mutts.”

Matt glanced towards two people that you guessed were the guards on duty. “We’re all questioning it at the moment. You’ve worked on these trucks before and on the biocomponents that were stolen. If anybody can figure out who did it, it’s probably going to be you. Sorry for interrupting your night.”

You gave an exasperated sigh with just enough hints of sadness. “It’s fine. Not like I was busy with anything important.”

“Sounded like you were at a bar.”

“We all have our ways of dealing with things,” you said. You walked over to where your boss was standing and let him know that you had arrived. It didn’t require much acting for you to convince him that you were exhausted (mostly because you were).

The officer he was speaking to looked you over before talking, “We think that an employee is behind this,” he explained. “Four androids are missing so they may be making money off resale values. They probably know something about the electronics also. Disabled the trackers completely.”

“Which is why we have so many managers here,” you summerised, glancing towards where Matt was giving another statement about where he had been. “There’s always the second option. Cyberlife has been having issues with deviation lately and whenever an android’s programming grows defective, the tracker shuts off.”

“Three were brand new shipments and one was a relatively new security model. Even on the off chance that they were all affected by software errors at the same time, there was no need for them to have taken biocomponents. The resale value for these components is higher than usual lately. I can place my bets there happily,” your boss explained. “We have a list of what we suspect was taken but it doesn’t align for any specific androids either.”

The officer stepped forward. “I’ll be escorting you while you attempt to locate the truck,” he explained. “It’s procedure.”

“No problem,” you said. You took one of the offered datapads and headed towards the spot where the truck had been parked. It had been one of the large ones. Easily enough to score big money if they knew the right people.

But if they did know who to sell it to, that meant you would know them.

“So did you help in the design of these trucks?” the officer asked after a few minutes of awkward silence as you checked the untouched truck standing next to the empty parking space. It hadn’t been tampered with by any outside forces which meant its tracker was still on.

“Not the original design,” you said. “No way I could take credit for that but I helped with getting better transport for the biocomponents. Cyberlife was having trouble with transporting some so I got to work with the trucks and better them. Quite an honour for me.”

He made a noise of acknowledgement and watched as you hooked the datapad to the truck. “You don’t work with androids in specific?”

“Never really wanted to,” you admitted. “I always found it slightly weird. Sometimes I sit in on the meetings about new designs and the like but I rarely get the chance to work with the prototypes and the like. I’m part of the team that makes sure the pumps work correctly and find ways to simulate human traits like breathing to make it more comfortable for people to be around them.”

The datapad gave a negative beep showing that it couldn’t find anything for the truck’s tracking. Apparently, its AI had been completely disabled also which meant there was no way for you to try and override it. Did anybody even know how to drive cars manually anymore?

“We recently got a new ‘prototype’ android in the police station actually,” he continued after a few seconds of silence. “It looks really human. You guys did a good job with that one.”

“Which model?” you asked.

“No idea,” he laughed awkwardly. “Never really looked at the thing long enough to see. We’re in different divisions so I’ve only caught glimpses of it from time to time. Do you guys not get told when prototypes are distributed?”

You shrugged and tried to find out if there was anything in the biocomponents that would let you track it. Perhaps a spare processor or something they wouldn’t have tampered with. “We just get told about the parts needed. Some of Cyberlife’s programs are so top secret that nobody will learn about what we’re making until it’s ready for selling.”

“That’s crazy,” he said. “Any luck?”

“Not much. I’m busy trying to find something that I could track but these bunch are either smart or they know a significant amount about how components work,” you unplugged the datapad and slid from the chair. “I can’t find anything.”

He nodded. “I hope you don’t mind but I’m required to take a statement from you about what you found here and where you were tonight,” he explained. “It’s not because we think you did anything but we just want to make sure.”

The lie you had decided upon spun itself easily and you even made a show of omitting the ‘painful’ parts about exactly what had happened on your botched date. “There are several people you can call to verify my story if you want their numbers,” you offered.

“It’s not going to be needed unless you become a proper suspect which is unlikely,” he assured you. “I’m really sorry that you were called here in the middle of your night out. Cyberlife just insisted that one of its workers be here instead of a police officer.”

You could understand that. The company had a weird obsession with secrecy. “Not much you can do. Just a shitty end to a shitty night. At least I have an excuse to come in late tomorrow.”

He gave a sympathetic grimace. “If you don’t mind me asking, what time do you finish?”

The opportunity presented itself to you like a feast on silver platters and you took it without a moment’s hesitation. “About 3,” you said. “Maybe if I push it, I can be off by two. Why do you ask?” He wasn’t subtle but you pretended that he was for the sake of his ego. Always something to be sure of when you were trying to flirt.

“I was thinking that maybe you and I could go out to lunch?” he suggested. “My break is at two so I can take you out and make up for the horrible date you had tonight. If you want to?”

“That sounds lovely,” you said. “Do you mind if I meet you at the station so I could glimpse the android prototype you were talking about? I’m very curious about the next model that I’ll be seeing flooding the streets.”

“Sure,” he said immediately. “I can’t take you inside the station but if you’re lucky, you’ll be able to see. I’ll try and get the model number for you just in case. I’m sure that I’m going to see it again before tomorrow afternoon.”

You smiled and trailed a hand down his arm for a brief second. “Then tomorrow it is. Can I go home now? I’m extremely exhausted.”

“Feel free,” he said. “We’re still going to be here for a while but I have your statement and the fact that you couldn’t locate the criminals has reassured me that we’re dealing with a Cyberlife employee here. The main investigation now is going to be who exactly they are.”

You thanked him and informed your boss that you hadn’t found anything. Once in the taxi on the way home, you pulled out the datapad and ran one final search – remotely connecting it to the trucks while you were still in range. If this didn’t work then you were going to bet it was Elijah Kamski himself who had stolen the parts.

Processors didn’t have trackers in them but some specialised replacement pumps did. They were built that way to make sure they got to their destinations at the appropriate store for delivery. While you were scanning the other trucks, you had worked out what had been put onto the stolen one.

The smug grin on your face when it showed the exact last known location of the truck was something out of an old-time cartoon.

Now you knew exactly where your possible rival was and you were building ties to a police officer that would help you get rid of the threat to your business. Now if only you could get a proper look at the apparent prototype, you would be able to work out whether or not it would be a problem.

And if it was then maybe you could see about turning it deviant.

After all, there would be no quicker way to stop Cyberlife from producing a particular line than corrupting their trial android.


	2. Chapter 2

The coffee splashed from the portable cup and cascaded down onto the snow as a result of you impassioned gesturing. You grimaced and chucked what was left into a nearby bin and wiped your hand off on the napkin. “Now you’ve made me spill my coffee,” you muttered into the cell phone. “Don’t think I’m letting you get a free pass on that one.”

“My greatest apologies,” a male voice drawled. You barely remembered his name but you knew he was being beyond sarcastic. “Look, if you want this done, just do it yourself. I’m running my ass off already without adding extra shit to the mix.”

Your eyes narrowed and you lowered your voice to ensure that nobody overheard. “If it was up to me, I would march down there and look myself but I don’t have the guns or the ability to slide under the radar. It’s not a tough job. Take some men and just look for any sellers hiding down on the abandoned ships or around them.”

“Those wrecks are poised to collapse at any moment. Anybody that I try to send down there is going to end up dead. I’m not willing to risk some of my best on one of your little whims.”

“Then obviously don’t go into the ships themselves. I’m not asking you to run into a warzone or anything. It’s just a scout around to see what kind of problem I’m dealing with. You’re aware that you’ll be getting paid for it.”

“Yeah but your prices are low for what you’re asking.”

“Well I’m not prepared to raise them. These assholes stole a ton of thirium which means that there may be a red ice plant going on down there. If they start trading, it’s going to affect both you and me so I recommend you get your pretentious prick down there and find out who the fuck we’re dealing with here.”

“You kiss your mother with that mouth of yours?”

You were nearing the police station now so you paused and pretended to fix your shoe while carrying on the conversation. “You’re playing on my last nerve here. If you don’t get me a solid report of what’s going on down there, I will cut off my supplies.”

“I have other ways of getting thirium.”

“Do you? Ironic that because last I heard, you’re floundering around like a fish out of water which is why you wanted that big order from me a couple weeks back. Deal with this issue. Now.”

The phone made a loud cracking noise when you snapped it and clanged as it hit the side of the bin. You straightened your clothing, keeping your head held high. Nobody even glanced at you a second time as you continued walking towards the police station. You were a little earlier than the original plan had been for but it gave you more time to look around.

You walked into the station with a brilliant smile on your face that made you look as though you were genuinely excited. It was probably best to wait in the visitor’s area but you were sure that nobody could catch you if you leaned against the wall and tried to catch a glimpse.

There was very few things that you could see in the station that you hadn’t been expecting. A large glass door was between you and the most you could make out was a few of the desks. There weren’t any visible androids.

You presumed that the prototype would be in sight but it wasn’t which irritated you slightly. What was the chance that the android you had encountered the previous night was the prototype?

The more that you thought about it, the higher the possibility seemed to be. It hadn’t been a model that you recognised and its automatic questioning of you was definitely something that you hadn’t encountered before when hanging around crime scenes.

Come to think of it, that had been a problem very often lately.

You gritted your teeth and glanced at the gates. There was no way that you would be allowed to walk in through the receptionist – the androids would call your bluff immediately – but the guard was human and that was an advantage.

“Hello,” you greeted him. “I’m dreadfully sorry to bother you but I’m here to see a cop named Matthew Wilson.” You gave a false giggle that could be taken as being nervous. “We have a date. Should I wait out here with everybody else? I’m really worried that somebody’s going to mistake me as needing to report a crime.”

He glanced over his shoulder and down the hall. “I apologise ma’am but there’s no other option,” he said. “I’ll ask somebody to call Matt and see if he can get here sooner but I think his lunch break only starts in half an hour.”

“Half an hour?” you asked, shoulders deflating. A small pout found its way onto your lips. “Alright. Do you guys have anything to do? Magazines or something?”

“Not really,” he said with a small, humourless chuckle. “But I’ll talk to some guys about getting a few later. There’s the television?”

You looked at the screen and made sure to give a smile that wavered. “Oh,” you said. “Politics. Always fun to hear about how close to war we are. You see it in every magazine and on every television… lovely and depressing, isn’t it?”

He gave a sympathetic nod and then looked down the hall once more. Quickly leaning over, he opened the gate with his badge and nodded to you. “Matt’s desk is the third one down,” he said in a small whisper. “I’m sure you can wait there so long as you don’t move anything.”

“Oh my gosh, thank you!” you said, doing a little hop. You ran through the gate and flashed him a grateful smile before all the emotion drained from your face briefly. Sometimes the acting got tiring. Especially when it involved being far too childlike and cheery. Still, you returned the expression before anybody could tell the difference and began weaving through the desks.

All the police androids were lined up against the one wall but they were standard models. You had never had a problem with those. They never cared to probe deeper than what their set of instructions asked of them.

Which was the reason you were weary of prototypes that did something more than that.

You found the desk positioned near the line up of androids but you pulled a face while thinking about waiting there. It limited your view of the room substantially which made you irritable. Instead you made a show of not knowing where you were going and looking around for any androids.

“Can I help you?” somebody asked. “You seem lost.”

“Sorry,” you said. “I really am.” You cursed the officer internally as he approached you. “I’m looking for Officer Wilson?”

The guy didn’t seem suspicious of you which was good. “Which one?” he asked. “We have two.”

“Matthew,” you specified. “I know that I’m really early but Cyberlife let me off today thanks to the robbery we had last night.” It hadn’t been a choice that you had wanted to take but there was nothing to be done about it. You would have been investigated if you begged to go into work on a Sunday morning when you had been up until early hours of the morning.

“Desk right over there,” the guy said, gesturing towards the desk that you had already noticed a few minutes ago. He smiled warmly at you which was better than what you had been expecting given that you were skulking around the station. “So you work in Cyberlife?”

“Yes,” you said. His desk was more central so you happily stood there and watched while talking. “I’m a biocomponents engineer working primarily with designing and creating trial versions of the equipment used most often in Cyberlife’s android prototypes.”

No need to mention that you had no idea what Cyberlife used your items for.

“Oh so you helped with Conner?”

“Conner?” you asked.

“Yeah, the new detective android,” he said, gesturing towards an empty desk. “I don’t remember what his model number was.”

No choice but to admit to your ignorance then. “Cyberlife don’t tell me anything,” you said, sighing a tad overdramatically. “I never get told what they’re planning for androids. It’s why I never really recognise prototypes when I hear or see them. It’s so frustrating because I put in all this effort and then I never get told what happens after.”

He chuckled and gave a knowing nod. “Hate to say it but I wouldn’t expect anything less from Cyberlife. The entire company is very underhanded, you know? Is there anybody that knows what’s going on there?”

“To be honest, I really doubt it. You should hear some of the arguments that have happened when one person does something without consulting the board but then they can’t undo it so the entire place dissolves into a constant argument. It’s quite bad really.”

About halfway through your statement, you noticed the android enter. It was so clearly different from the other police androids that you immediately realised that it was the prototype. And as luck would have it, it was the one that you encountered the previous night.

The officer you were talking to noticed your attention shift and looked over in the direction. “Oh, that’s Conner,” he said. “He’s a good detective so I’d say your parts went to good use on that one.”

“Another RK model,” you said simply. You didn’t stare for as long as you would want just in case you were noticed. “Those things are seriously advanced. There was one that I helped test out a few years back called the RK400. Thing got scrapped when they realised that they could make it more efficient but it never fails to shock me how useful they are.”

“Tell me about. I can’t do forensic analysis on the spot no matter how good I did in the academy.”

The android and its human partner were making their way over to where you were standing. You took that as an opportunity to glance up and give a very surprised face. “Oh, you’re the android that I saw last night,” you said in faux shock. “The one that accused me of being a patron of the Eden Club.”

The officer you were talking to snorted with a barely-concealed laughter and you allowed a humoured smirk to fall into place.

Conner tilted its head slightly and your eyes narrowed when you saw brief conflict flash across its face. “Yes,” he said. “I remember you. I apologise for the confusion. I never meant to accuse you of anything but I was interpreting it based off your facial expression. Are you here to report a crime?”

“If I was here for that after the amount of stuff that I saw last night, you would know some cosmic being had it out for me,” you joked.

“Yes, I saw on the records that you were present during interrogation over the theft that occurred at Cyberlife docks last night,” it said. “Accourding to what I read, they believe that it was a job caused by an employee who wanted to sell the parts however I do not understand why they would not just have taken thirium as opposed to a collection of parts.”

“Parts sell,” you said. “Cyberlife has competitors who would love to take those apart and analyse them. Red Ice is one of the few things that you can make from android parts.”

You thought primarily of a man named Zlatko who had often bought parts from you directly. He never told you why he wanted them and you never asked but given his shifty eyes, you sincerely doubted it was anything good.

Come to think of it, you hadn’t heard from him in a while.

“So you’re an RK800 then,” you said. “I didn’t even notice when you spoke to me last night.” You stared down at his jacket. “I’m guessing that I can’t really ask too many questions?”

“I’m afraid that you’re not of an appropriate rank to have that information shared with you.”

You nodded as though you had known that was going to be the case. The android’s human partner had sat down and was watching the interaction with a wary eye and an obvious hangover. He was trying to get a read off of you and if the tag on his desk said anything, it could be a problem. A lieutenant would see right through most of your bullshit.

“For what it’s worth, I do sincerely apologise for what I said when I presumed that you were a patron of the club,” the android continued. “Recently due to the uprising of deviant numbers, I have been searching for those who may be able to benefit the investigation.”

“Your partner back there not helpful enough?” you asked teasingly.

“That’s not what I intended to imply at all. All of the officers working in the Detroit Police Department are highly effective at their jobs and I am honoured to be working alongside them. I was merely stating that somebody who works with androids may be able to provide a better perspective as they are more knowledgeable,” it explained.

“Okay, firstly,” you said, glancing at the humans in the vicinity. “I want it on record that played no part in the brown-nosing program.” You turned your attention back to it. “Secondly, I don’t work with androids at all?”

The LED started blinking yellow rapidly and then calmed after a minute. “My apologies once more,” it said. “It appears that I did not fully read your files when I was scanning through them. You work in the design and maintenance of biocomponents.”

It took way too much effort not to smile.

You didn’t even need to do any work. This android was practically a deviant already despite how much it was trying to pretend that it was normal and, if the partner’s expression was anything to base it off, he knew as well.

You just needed to find a way to add the last straw to the camel’s back.

“No problem,” you said, putting on your standard flirtatious smile and tilting your hips to the side. “Your name’s Conner, right?”

“Yes.”

“It’s nice of them to finally start using standard names for your series,” you said. You gave an air-headed roll of your eyes and then smiled lightly. “I’m so done with serial numbers if I’m being honest. They’re impossible to keep track of at the best of times. Names are far better, don’t you agree?”

Conner stared at you. You were confusing it but its response still confirmed what you were thinking. “Serial numbers are very efficient,” it said. “But I do believe that names allow for more efficient integration with humans.”

You moved ever-so-slightly closer. The lieutenant was definitely watching you now but he was preparing a defence rather than getting suspicious. “So what were you actually created for?” you asked. “I can guess it has something to do with how many deviant cases there have been.”

“Alright,” the lieutenant said, standing up. He moved very deftly between the two of you. “We have work to get done.”

“Sorry,” you said. “I’m just curious.”

He scoffed. “Curious? Right. I’ll sum this up for you. You work for Cyberlife so I don’t trust you at all. Drop whatever act you’re trying to pull. You’re not subtle.”

You raised an eyebrow and backed away, holding your hands in a defensive position. “Sorry, I really wasn’t trying to do anything,” you said. “I’m genuinely just curious. We don’t get told what our parts create so I want to see what Cyberlife have been up to. I meant no harm and I’m not trying to breach any confidentiality rules. Promise.”

He didn’t believe you at all and you met his gaze with a challenging expression. It struck you as weird when instead of taking you up on your lies, he merely led the android back to his desk and shrugged. Not a normal thing for high-ranking cops. They didn’t like being challenged normally.

“Sorry about Hank,” the officer said from behind you. You finally took notice of his tag. Chris Miller. “He tends to get like that. You know how it is. Man was never a big fan of androids and then the department forces him to work alongside one.”

 “That was entirely my fault though,” you gushed. “I really didn’t mean to cause any trouble but sometimes I speak before I think and it always ends poorly.”

He waved a hand. “Don’t worry about it. You’re not being problematic or anything like that. Who wouldn’t want to know what their hard work has resulted in.”

You didn’t have time to respond before somebody walked up beside you and said your name. “Sorry for interrupting,” she said. She was a young policewoman with a nervous smile on her face. “Are you here for Officer Wilson?”

“Yes,” you said. “Is something wrong?”

“I’m his partner. He wanted me to tell you that he’s dreadfully sorry but he won’t be able to make your date today. We’ve been absolutely swamped with work and he’s busy in the interrogation room now. He doesn’t want to make you wait for several hours so he was hoping the two of you could reschedule.”

“Of course,” you said, doing a very impressive job of biting back your irritation. “Can I borrow a pen?”

Miller offered you one and you scribbled down the number of your second main phone on a spare piece of paper. It wasn’t your primary cell – a police officer with that would be hell – but it was the one you tended to carry around in the top of your purse as opposed to looped in with your belt.

After bidding everybody goodbye, you cast once glance towards the android and waited until he looked up at you. You winked and then walked out the building, putting on a sour and disappointed act for the guard who apologised and promised that he would let you back in if you chose to meet up at the station for your next date.

Then you clambered into a taxi and told it to drive you down to the old shipyard.

The place gave you the creeps. Everything was old and rusted. You pulled your jacket tightly around your ears as you walked through and tightened your hand around the old .44 revolver that sat under your shirt. An old model but one that would knock the teeth out of anybody who came close.

You spotted the men in their dark jackets without much trouble and shrugged out of your own to show them that you weren’t with anybody. Most recognised you and you got a few glares for being the reason they were looking around regardless.

Their boss stalked over the moment he noticed you with a cigarette dangling from his mouth. “Did what you asked,” he said. “And there isn’t a single person here. We’ve searched the entire area. Like I told you.”

You glanced up at the huge freighter next to you. “And you checked inside these.”

“Only one of these wrecks is even stable enough to go near and I ain’t walking inside of it looking for nothing. The next thing you know, it comes down on all of our heads.”

“Thought that Red Ice you smoke is meant to make you all big and tough, not a pussy,” you commented.

“I don’t smoke my product. Not good for business to allow somebody to pull a fast one on you.” He glanced down at your outfit. “Did you forget that I’m not interested in those tits of yours so trying to convince me like that isn’t going to work.”

You rolled your eyes. “This was not for you,” you said. It was hard to act as though you were fine with your easiest method of manipulation being useless. You didn’t like putting effort into changing people’s minds but when they were more interested in men… well then you didn’t have much of a choice. “I have other business to attend to besides caring about what gets you up.”

He scoffed and grabbed a gun from one of his men. “Here’s the best I’ll do for you,” he said. He chucked it to you and smirked when you fumbled to catch it. “That’s the latest weapon on the market. Thing’ll blow somebody’s head to little red slithers.”

“And your point would be?”

“If you want to go and play the hero, be my guest. You can explore that piece of junk by yourself. If you get out alive, I’ll pay you double for whatever I need on my next order and it’ll be a doozy. We’re talking thousands.”

You smirked and pulled your jacket back on. “Triple and we have a deal.”

He held out his hand. “Deal.”

The old ship’s name bore down on you as you smirked up at it. Jericho.

**Author's Note:**

> Hola Readers!  
> Thank you for taking the time to read this far into the story. I really hope you enjoyed what you've read so far.  
> This story updates every Thursday.  
> If you're interested in supporting me as an author, I am on Patreon. https://www.patreon.com/user?u=14580217  
> Finally I do not own Detroit: Become Human or any characters seen in said game.


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